Erik Guthrie Discusses Zone’s Social Distancing Software Unveiled This Week

During a time when social distancing has become so important, the laser tag industry is just starting to re-emerge with operators preparing and beginning to re-open their businesses that were shut down through the COVID-19 pandemic. This makes the new innovation announced this week by Zone Laser Tag all the more timely and relevant. Zone has just unveiled their new social distancing software (ZAPS) as a way to enforce social distancing inside the arena during a game. Erik Guthrie, Vice President of Sales for Zone Laser Tag and curator of the Laser Tag Museum took some time to discuss this latest update for Helios Pro and Helios 2 systems as well as how the laser tag industry is coming through this unprecedented time in history.

 

Thank you again to Erik Guthrie for sharing the latest on both this new update and the state of the laser tag industry.

 

 

Comments or Questions?

Contact: Tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com

Websites: www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com and www.photonforever.com

An Interview with Maree Harris of Laserforce

I’d like to thank Maree Harris of Laserforce for taking time for an interview during last year’s IAAPA to share her unique perspective as the world’s longest-running female laser tag operator.

I’m pleased to share this as the latest addition to the the Oral History of Laser Tag series. See what Maree (aka Aunty Mars) had to say here...

http://www.lasertagmuseum.com/oral-history/industry-leader-interviews/468-tiviachick-interviews-maree-harris-with-laserforce

It’s been three months since most of us have been able to enjoy a game of laser tag and I’m looking forward to regions in my state hopefully moving into Phase 4 of re-opening within the next couple of weeks. This has been a challenging time for everyone, certainly including most laser tag and amusement business owners. However, it’s inspiring to look at someone like Maree who has longevity as a laser tag operator to serve as a reminder that the laser tag industry is resilient and we can take heart that laser tag is a time-tested and ever-evolving pastime that will return as an entertainment option before too long...and of course I will be there blogging about it when that time arrives!


And by the way, my thanks to Laserforce for the shout out on their social media!

Comments or Questions?
Contact: Tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com
Websites: www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com and www.photonforever.com

Where Do I Tag Next?

When laser tag arenas open throughout the country I will continue to show up, support and blog about them. Right now I’m looking for info on which states are allowing laser tag to open and when. The pins on this map mark the arenas that I’ve already played. Now I would love suggestions to help me figure out where else to go next once things re-open.

Shout out to Chook for the excellent suggestion that I make a second map marking the sites which I have yet to play, but that I would like to get to in the future. That will help me set some new travel goals, so I’ll be working on that while I keep tabs on where I will be able to play again the soonest. I’ve heard that Ohio will be allowing arenas to open up as early as the 10^th of this month (which is this Wednesday) and I am VERY tempted to take a road trip. However, for now I just want to encourage people to do two things…stay safe and also stay supportive. Of course, use caution and common sense when you go anywhere, but I personally will not allow fear to rule my life and fear will not prevent me from getting back to enjoying the game I love so much as soon as it is reasonable to do so. I believe in supporting local arenas in particular (the FECs are great to play, but the local owners and operators are the ones I am particularly concerned about). As I watch what has happened to local businesses in the past three months I am all the more an advocate of helping them to get back up and running (safely) as soon as possible. My part may be small, but together we can all help them get back on track.



You may remember (especially because I haven’t written too many posts since March) that I was traveling for tag on the other side of the country during the week when COVID-19 started to really be responded to here in the U.S. I self-quarantined out of precaution, but fortunately I was healthy through the entire ten weeks I stayed at home. That was on the heels of playing at 15 different arenas in four states. I’m not suggesting that traveling to that magnitude is a great idea right now, but what I saw at many of those arenas back in March was a deliberate effort to step up cleanliness procedures and keep customers safe while they continued to enjoy laser tag. I witnessed firsthand separation of vests for disinfecting, timed schedules for spraying down equipment and new protocols that had me feeling more confident about playing at these arenas even before our country closed things down. Now that we are all better educated and know more about how to keep our social distance (which has always been a good idea and in some games keeping a five foot distance from other players in the arena was already being recommended for safety…an extra foot of distance doesn’t seem unmanageable) I look forward to safely returning to laser tag sites and supporting the local businesses that make it possible for us to enjoy the game.



So, please drop me a note if you know when your state will allow laser tag arenas to re-open and if there is one that you think I should pay a visit to please suggest it because while others are dealing with spring fever, I am definitely here with a case of “tag fever” and I can’t wait to get back to it!





Comments or Questions?

Contact: Tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com

Websites: www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com and www.photonforever.com